Jonathan Ntutu
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu |
| Nationality | South African |
| Born | 4 February 1984 |
| Height | 171 cm (5 ft 7 in) |
| Sport | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Sport | Athletics |
| Disability class | T12 |
| Club | Tygerberg Northlink Club |
| Coached by | Paul Gorries |
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Medal record
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Ndodomzi Jonathan Ntutu (born 4 February 1984) is a visually impaired South African sprinter. Competing in the T12 classification, Ntutu has competed at three Summer Paralympic Games, winning bronze in the 2012 Games in London. He is also a multiple World Championships winner, taking five medals over four tournaments.
Ntutu was born in the township of Gugulethu in Cape Town, South Africa in 1984 to Alexander Ntutu and his wife Sylvia. He was born with a congenital complication that left him visually impaired; though he is not blind. He was unable to cope in mainstream education and his parents, who struggled financially, ensured that his needs were catered for by enrolling him in the Athlone School for the Blind. His father died in 1996, when Ntutu was entering his early teen years. He now lives in Bellville, Western Cape.
Ntutu first showed promise as an athlete whilst at the Athlone school, showing at aptitude for sprinting. He was inspired to compete at the Paralympic Games after a pupil at his school qualified for the South Africa team at the 2000 Games in Sydney. He took onboard a local trainer, David Williams, and began training at the Vygieskraal Stadium in Athlone. His efforts were rewarded, when in 2004, he was selected for the South African team at the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens. Initially classified as a T13 category athlete, for competitors with limited vision, he entered two events in Athens; the 100 metres sprint (T13) and the long jump (F13). He finished sixth overall in the long jump and his time of 11.34 in the heats of the 100m saw him finish two hundredths of a second outside the qualification time for the finals. Two years later he won his first major international medal, taking bronze in 100 metre sprint at the 2006 IPC Athletics World Championships in Assen.
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